The Safari was out at lunchtime, sneaking briefly into someone else's territory. Not a lot of time but a short walk along the side of the estuary but an interesting selection of birds seen never-the-less. A couple of Little Grebes were in one of the creeks and out on the marsh a male Goosander rubbed shoulders with a helluva lot of Wigeon. Waders included plenty of Curlews, many Redshanks, a quick fly round of about 15 Snipe and a very unseasonal Common Sandpiper, although one has over-wintered here for couple of winters now and this one didn't seem to have any problems finding worms in the mud.
And now for one of our favourite rants about over-cut hedgerows. Not a lot of winter shelter from the cold winds whipping up the river here anymore
Unnecessarily butchered along the footpath and woe betide anything that was out of line like the Elder that's been hacked to pieces. None of it was likely to be overhanging the path and how much damage to the grass in the pasture was any shading likely to cause? it's just too easy to butcher hedges with heavy machinery and little or no knowledge of the natural world - just so long as it looks 'tidy...well actually smashed up branches and see-through hedges aren't 'tidy!'...wish people would get that in their fat heads!!! There's gotta be a better way...
Rant over; we followed our walk with a fine lunch and a couple of pints were enjoyed by the fire side at one of the few pubs in the region that allows dogs in...that's another rant for another day...
On a far lighter note our toast this morning bears a striking resemblance to somewhere we hope to visit next year...can you guess where?
Where to next? Unlikely to be a safari tomorrow, but wherever you are we hope Santa is kind and brings you everything you wrote on the note to him you hid up the chimney earlier this month.
In the meantime let the feasting begin!!!
4 comments:
"On a far lighter note our toast this morning bears a striking resemblance to somewhere we hope to visit next year...can you guess where?"
Wouldn't be Towcester would it? - Just kidding Bruce.
A very Merry Xmas to you & yours Davo.
Cliff
Merry Christmas, Dave.
Dear Dave,
I came across a blog you wrote back in 2011 (reference below).
Please excuse my lack of knowledge about the nature but willing to learn from it.
I understand that over-cutting a hedge is not the best way to encourage growth and health for a hedge row.
What would you recommend to do in order to keep an over-grown hedge tidy, trimmed in and healthy?
Reference to your blog:
"And now for one of our favourite rants about over-cut hedgerows. Not a lot of winter shelter from the cold winds whipping up the river here anymore
[Image] Unnecessarily butchered along the footpath and woe betide anything that was out of line like the Elder that's been hacked to pieces. None of it was likely to be overhanging the path and how much damage to the grass in the pasture was any shading likely to cause? it's just too easy to butcher hedges with heavy machinery and little or no knowledge of the natural world - just so long as it looks 'tidy...well actually smashed up branches and see-through hedges aren't 'tidy!'...wish people would get that in their fat heads!!!"
Hi Christine Many thanks for your enquiry
Can you get in touch via facebook, twitter, or other means - my answer is going to be a bit long for a comment on here I'll probably include some pics too
Best wishes
Dave
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